Under Repair - some features not currently available

History of Project MACULA

  • 2014: RPE grading system revised by Emma Zanzottera, MD.
  • 2013: ex vivo imaging and annotation of advanced AMD eyes of existing collection were completed for website launching in October for the International Spectralis Symposium, New York NY ProjectMACULA Team
  • 2013: live demo of website on the convention floor at the Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, Seattle WA See Picture Here
  • 2012-2013: advanced AMD cases were annotated and uploaded. Case Reports highlighted features from each eye photographed in high-resolution color, created for presentation at lab meetings. Annotation codes were added to incorporate advanced pathologies.
  • 2011-2012: essentials of the current user interface, MySQL database design, and search infrastructure were created by Lindsay Hannon, under the supervision of Kenneth R. Sloan, PhD.
  • 2011-2012: collaboration with Dwight Stambolian, MD, PhD (University of Pennsylvania Ophthalmology) led to the BIMR Project to obtain high-resolution histology and total chorioretinal gene expression via RNA-sequencing on paired donor eyes, funded by the Mabel and Arnold Beckman Initiative for Macular Research. Histology from eyes analyzed at UAB is posted at the BIMR Project.
  • 2011: ImageJ software for measurement, annotation, and data extraction was written by Freese, under the supervision of Kenneth R. Sloan, PhD (UAB Computer and Information Science) The first non-neovascular AMD eyes were annotated, measured, and uploaded. Data on the topography of subretinal drusenoid deposit and basal linear deposit was presented at IV International Symposium of the German Ophthalmological Society, “Age-related Macular Degeneration” (AMD2011, Baden-Baden Germany).
  • 2010: funding was secured from the National Eye Institute, Edward N. and Della L. Thome Memorial Foundation, and International Retinal Research Foundation for histology, imaging, annotations, and development of the Project MACULA website.
  • 2009: collaboration with Richard F. Spaide, MD (Vitreous Retina Macula Consultants of New York) inspired Dr. Curcio to make the eyes remaining in this collection available in a format that would facilitate interpretation of high-resolution spectral domain optical coherence tomography. This cross-sectional clinical imaging technique is the diagnostic/ management method of choice for ophthalmologists treating chorioretinal disease.
  • Macula-wide high-resolution sections were developed by Jeffrey D. Messinger, DC, Research Associate.
  • A Spectralis SD-OCT instrument was made available for ex vivo imaging of tissues by Christopher A. Girkin, MD, MSPH, then Director of the Glaucoma Service at UAB 
  • 1995-2009: >900 pairs of donor eyes were accessioned from the Alabama Eye Bank by the laboratory of Christine A. Curcio, PhD, for research on aging and AMD.
  • Tissues were recovered and preserved Donor demographics: non-diabetic; age range 16-103 yr mean age, 71.5 yr; 93% white; 53% female.
  • Many eyes were preserved in pairs for light and electron microscopy. Most eyes were subject to ex vivo color fundus imaging on film prior to use in histopathology, immunohistochemistry, or biochemistry experiments.
  • Eye health histories were obtained for many donors and abstracted by Nancy E. Medeiros, MD, Retina Specialists of North Alabama.
  • A full list of Curcio Lab publications using these eyes is available here.
  • This work was funded by the National Eye Institute (1995-2007), International Retinal Research Foundation (2001-2004), and the Vision Science Research Center at UAB (2001-2004). During 2001-2004, many donor pairs were shared with other investigators through the Shared Ocular Tissues Module of the Vision Science Research Center.